The Burger: America’s Favorite Food

No one can deny the hamburger is quintessentially American. But did you know it actually got its start in Europe? At least its name did.

Despite that, some food historians believe the first burger was actually created in America. They believe German immigrants in New York in the 1800s may have made the prototype of what we now call a hamburger.

Ten Fun Facts about Hamburgers

While people may disagree about the burger’s origins, no one can deny its popularity. Here are ten fun facts about our beloved burger:

• Americans consume 13 billion hamburgers annually. This is estimated to be enough burgers to circle the earth 32 times.

• Hamburgers got their name from Hamburg, Germany, where a cut of beef called the Hamburg steak is from.

• During World War I, the United States government tried to rename hamburgers liberty sandwiches.

• In 1921, short-order cook Walter Anderson and insurance executive E.W. Ingram founded White Castle, the oldest burger chain, in Wichita, Kansas. Their first burger sold for a nickel.